Cutting - Welding Sparks a flying

C

CastleCrest

Joined Aug 2004
2K Posts | 1+
2 years back I bought a welder from a gas station going out of biz.

I played with it a little last year - welding peices of metal I found on the train tracks to make door stops for the Castle.

Some of the more complicated peices fell apart over the winter.
I didn't know they were cast iron and hard to weld.

I just set up a torch to cut steel with and fabricated a bumper and tow hitch onto the back of my yards truck.

Someone once said to me there are 2 kinds of welds.
1- those that hold
2- those that don't
I think I got this connected pretty solid -
I may hook a chain to it and see if I can yank some tree stump out of the ground :shock: or if it cracks.
Not sure why but I always wanted to be able to cut and weld
things together.
Being a jeweler learning to do plumbing work was easy.
This is very different but is still connecting metal to metal.

I'm hoping someday soon someone stops by that has done this before & can tell me if I got the torch flame right &
a few tips on welding.

Fun Fun Fun!
CC
 
What Kind of welder is it? Is it stick ( were you have the electrode clamped in a vise grip like holder) or Tig ( you have a torch in one hand and the electrode in another) or Mig (were the electrode runs Thur the torch) One important thing to remember is you want to melt both metals before adding elcetrode or rod to it. Actually rereading your post it seems like you may have a Oxy-Acetylene Torch were you actually have fire. That is not really Welding but Brazing. Let me know and I will see if I can help.
 
I played with it a little last year - welding peices of metal I found on the train tracks to make door stops for the Castle.
Click to expand...

What happened to the trains the next day.....
 
It is a stick welder!
The torch I used is Oxy/Acte & I used it for cutting.
I had a c-beam (if that is what it is called?) I used as part of the bumper & welded the tow hitch to it.


Banihex said:
I played with it a little last year - welding peices of metal I found on the train tracks to make door stops for the Castle.
Click to expand...

What happened to the trains the next day.....
Click to expand...

:shock: That is Funny! LMAO!
 
Barcochris said:
One important thing to remember is you want to melt both metals before adding electrode or rod to it..
Click to expand...

Question,
Lets say: The metal of the truck is a little thicker than what I am welding to it. You wrote :
you want to melt both metals
Click to expand...
DO i lean the heat of the arc into the heavy piece trying to arrive at the same temp as I lay the weld to create the seam???


In jewelry Gold and Silver are very different to work with.

With Silver a small piece heats up much faster than a big piece and both pieces have to be the right temp. to get the solder to flow right.
If on side is hotter the solder jumps to that piece/side
Gold has a greater tolerance to heat and attaching small to big is easier in some ways!

The bigger the object & greater the thickness of gold or silver adds
a degree of difficult to soldering small to big.
 
These Door Stops I made out of metal I found on tthe train tracks
 

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It looks to me like you just need more heat (higher amperage) if the weld looks like bird crap you need a little more heat. Are those cast? if that is the case its is just a hard thing to weld.

As far as welding something thicker to something thinner use the setting for the thicker metal and just "pull in" the thinner metal. Welding is a practice thing. you just have to play. That is how I learned, I played.


And welding unlike metals is hard also. it tends to give a dirty weld or not as strong.
 
Barcochris said:
Are those cast?
Click to expand...

Yeah the Train parts are cast - tough all right!
I tried cutting some of it & had a hard time.

I'm playing on things that don't matter or need to be nice.
The truck can't look any worse than it does already.
The Trash Truck as we call it.
I'm going to rebuild a trailer next week & see how that goes - m
 
OK the anal retentivness in me is sprouting.

1. TIG there is the torch which has a tunsten electrode in it. Then you have the filler metal.

2. Oxy-Acetylene Torch is welding (OAW) it depends on the tip and the settings. You have a single tube type tip it is for welding with a netrual flame and Carburising flame for brazing. There is also a rosebud tip for heating and the cutting tip.

http://www.twi.co.uk/j32k/protected/band_3/jk3.html

As to Barcochris's second post I totally agree.

What type of electrode are you using, 6010, 6011??

As to welding cast steel you will not be able to do the job correctly with SMAW (Shielded metal arc weld, Stick).

It should be done with TIG and a filler metal that is for cast metal, and then a filler metal that is for that type of cast metal. You also need to preheat and then coll it very slowly. A lot slower then air cool.

Hey CC if you want PM me and we can talk on the phone. I don't have school tonight.

Cheers
Martin
 
Martin,
Not tonight!
I am a little beat and my wife left the car light on & I have to go pick her up from work tonight. Funny how that works :roll: Tomoorw is Mother's day for me - going out to dinner.
Now I am going to take a nap until I need to get the Wifey :x
 
No worries. I just figured I would help you out while I wasn't in class which is normally 5 days a week.

Have a good nap.
 
It just goes to show you learn something every day. You guys make it sound so intersting that I kind of feel like I want to go and weld something. CC those door stops look fantastic - even if they are a little rough, but that gives them that country look.

Keep it up guys, its a great discussion topic.
 
If you really want to learn how to weld, I would suggest checking out your local community college. I weld for a living, but I learned on the job, by watching and talking to the weldors and practacing during breaks and such.
 
RedLeg0811 said:
What type of electrode are you using, 6010, 6011??

Cheers
Martin
Click to expand...

I wish I knew!

When I bought the Welder there were 2 boxes of sticks.
Thick & Thin - :?
I been trying both and seeing how they work.
I figured thick for heavy metal & thin for thinner metal.

How big a difference does the rod make?

when you say electrode are we talking about the same thing???
 
MarkG said:
If you really want to learn how to weld, I would suggest checking out your local community college. I weld for a living, but I learned on the job, by watching and talking to the weldors and practacing during breaks and such.
Click to expand...

Welding school would be cool, but is not int he cards for me.
I'm more hands on & low cost.
I figured I learn as I go & then after hours/days/weeks of doing it
someone will show the right way to do it :shock:
 
When you find yourself up to the task of making me a nice ash tray let me know and we'll barter
.
.
.
as long as you still have all your fingers :wink:
 
Motion123 said:
When you find yourself up to the task of making me a nice ash tray let me know and we'll barter
.
.
.
as long as you still have all your fingers :wink:
Click to expand...

If you want a silver & gold gem incrusted ashtray -
you would be blown away by what I can create!
Steel is far from me at this point - :roll:
 
CastleCrest said:
Motion123 said:
When you find yourself up to the task of making me a nice ash tray let me know and we'll barter
.
.
.
as long as you still have all your fingers :wink:
Click to expand...

If you want a silver & gold gem incrusted ashtray -
you would be blown away by what I can create!
Steel is far from me at this point - :roll:
Click to expand...

Sounds like something Paris H would have. :) :) :)
 
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